Related Events

Michael P. Freed has been confirmed as the new president and CEO of Priority Health, according to an announcement today. Freed has been serving as interim president and CEO of the HMO since May 2012. He will also continue in his current role as executive vice president and CFO of Spectrum Health System.

“The future of the health care industry is based on increased competition, consumer choice, innovation and models of care that provide a higher level of quality at lower costs,” said Richard C. Breon, president and CEO of Spectrum Health, which owns Priority Health. He added that Freed’s experience in health care financing “makes him a clear choice to lead Priority Health in this new and ever-changing health care environment.”

Freed is a 30-year veteran of the health care industry, having spent the last 17 years at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids. His management experience includes positions at Central New England HealthAlliance in Leominster, Mass., HealthAmerica in Pennsylvania, a Pittsburgh-based HMO owned by Coventry Corp. and Saratoga Hospital in Saratoga Springs, N.Y. He holds a bachelor’s degree from The State University of New York (SUNY) in Plattsburgh and is a certified public accountant.

Priority Health provides health care coverage to more than 600,000 people and is one of the largest organizations of its type in the state. It was founded in 1986 as Butterworth HMO.

Restricted Content

About GRBJ

Since 1983, the Grand Rapids Business Journal has been West Michigan's primary and most-trusted source of local business news. The weekly print edition of the Business Journal, a must-read for the area’s top decision-makers, is known as the business newspaper of metro Grand Rapids, Holland, Muskegon and all of West Michigan.

grbj.com provides the same trusted and objective business reporting that the Business Journal is known for -- plus real-time original content, timely enewsletters/alerts, exclusive blogs and more. Business Journal subscribers receive the weekly print edition, including bonus publications like the annual Book of Lists, and also complete access to all content on grbj.com.

The Grand Rapids Business Journal is published by Gemini Publications.